Current concepts in the management of urinary tract infection

Careful specimen collection is essential in the diagnosis of urinary infection. In adults with normal kidneys and urinary tracts recurrent urinary infection is a benign condition, but in patients with underlying renal abnormalities, infection can potentiate renal scarring and progression of renal failure and it is thus important to identify patients at risk. Single dose therapy appears to be a major advance in the management of patients with urinary tract infection in that it is simple, safe, cheap, effective, and well tolerated by patients. Single dose therapy may also serve as a guide to identify patients requiring radiological investigation.